101 Video Games That Everyone Should Play At Least Once

Over the years, we’ve ranked entire franchises, applauded critical darlings, and publicly shamed those that let themselves down. What we’ve never done, however, is curate a list of the games that are, in our humble opinion, nothing short of brilliant. TO BE CLEAR, this isn’t a list of the best games ever according to the likes of Metacritic, nor are we actually ranking them, so the game featured in the top spot isn’t necessarily any better than the game at number 101. Instead this list is our way of chronicling 101 fantastic titles that will always have a place in our hearts. The only thing we’ve stipulated is that they must be available on either current-generation hardware or the previous one, i.e., any console released since 2012, or on a PC. After all, it wouldn’t be very cool of us to recommend games that it’s near-impossible to get hold of. Here are the 101 Video Games that Everyone Should Play At Least Once.

101 Video Games That Everyone Should Play At Least Once:
• Animal Crossing: New Horizons
• Assassin’s Creed II
• Batman: Arkham Asylum
• BioShock
• Borderlands 2
• Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
• Cave Story+
• Celeste
• Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped
• Dark Souls
• Dead Space
• Deadly Premonition
• Detroit: Become Human
• Deus Ex
• Devil May Cry
• Disco Elysium
• Doom
• DuckTales
• Elden Ring
• Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
• Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture
• Fallout 3
• Final Fantasy VII
• Final Fantasy X
• Gears of War
• Ghost of Tsushima
• God of War
• Grand Theft Auto V
• Grim Fandango
• Half-Life 2
• Halo 3
• Halo Reach
• Halo: Combat Evolved
• Heavy Rain
• Hitman: Blood Money
• Hollow Knight
• Journey
• Katamari Damacy Reroll
• Kirby’s Adventure
• L.A. Noire
• Life is Strange
• Limbo
• Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
• Mass Effect 2
• Mega Man 2
• Metal Gear Solid
• Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
• Metroid Prime
• Minecraft
• Mortal Kombat 11
• Nier: Automata
• Outer Wilds
• Perfect Dark
• Persona 5 Royal
• Pikmin 3
• Pokémon Yellow
• Portal
• Portal 2
• Quake
• Red Dead Redemption 2
• Resident Evil
• Resident Evil 4
• Shadow of the Colossus
• Sid Meier’s Civilization IV
• Sonic the Hedgehog 2
• Soulcalibur II
• Spider-Man
• Spyro the Dragon
• Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
• Stardew Valley
• Super Mario 64
• Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
• System Shock 2
• Tetris Effect: Connected
• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
• The Last of Us
• The Last of Us: Part II
• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
• The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
• The Sims 3
• The Walking Dead
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
• TimeSplitters 2
• Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
• Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
• Undertale
• Unpacking
• What Remains of Edith Finch
• World of Warcraft
• Yakuza 0

#MustPlayGames #EssentialVideoGames #TripleJump

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TripleJump provides video coverage of video games - including top ten lists featuring current gen platforms (PS4 & PS5, Xbox One & Xbox Series X/Xbox Series S, Nintendo Switch and PC), retro consoles (PlayStation, Nintendo, Xbox and Sega), as well as Worst Games Ever, video game challenges, launch games videos, first impressions, podcasts, livestreams and much, much more.

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[TeamTripleJump]

REMINDER: This is not a definitive list of the best video games ever made but rather our personal picks for titles we reckon you NEED to play, and as such is in *no particular order*. These games have been selected with availability in mind, so a title won't make the cut if you can't easily get your hands on it today! OH, and Marvel's Spider-Man is coming to PC on August 12th & Persona 5 Royal is coming to Xbox Series/Nintendo Switch on October 21st (recent announcements).

🎮With that said, how many of them have you played, and what would make your personal list? 🎮

[AveenFernando]

Timestamps

1. The Witcher 3 (2015) : 1:53
2. Bioshock (2007) : 3:01
3. World of Warcraft (2004) : 4:05
4. The Last of Us (2013) : 5:09
5. Mass Effect 2 (2010) : 6:09
6. Borderlands 2 (2012) : 7:26
7. Pokemon Yellow (1998) : 8:39
8. God of War (2018) : 9:49
9. Call of Duty 4 MW (2007) : 10:58
10. Outerwilds (2019) : 12:09
11. Resident Evil (2002) : 13:14
12. Fallout 3 (2008) : 14:31
13. Mega Man (1988) : 15:55
14. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 : 17:15
15. Nier : Automata (2017) : 18:40
16. Hollow Knight (2017) : 19:54
17. Undertale (2015) : 21:09
18. Batman Arkarm Asylum (2009) : 22:23
19. Deadly Premonition (2010) : 23:53
20. Super Mario 64 (1996) : 25:18
21. The Legend of Zelda : Ocarina of Time (1998) : 26:43
22. Star Wars : Knights of the Old Republic (2003) : 28:01
23. Uncharted 2 : Among Thieves (2009) : 29:21
24. Halo : Combat Evolved (2001) : 30:31
25. Portal (2007) : 31:49
26. Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion (2006) : 33:10
27. Half Life 2 (2004) : 34:30
28. Dead Space (2008) : 35:48
29. Limbo (2010) : 37:08
30. GrandTheft Auto V (2013) : 38:14
31. Crash Bandicoot Warped (1998) : 39:27
32. Minecraft (2011) : 40:38
33. Last of Us Part 2 (2020) : 41:43
34. Detroit : Become Human (2018) : 42:47
35. Halo : Reach (2010) : 43:53
36. Spyro the Dragon (1998) : 44:57
37. Yakuza 0 (2015) : 46:11
38. Dark Souls (2011) : 47:21
39. Spider-Man (2018) : 48:37
40. Timeslitters 2 (2002) : 49:54
41. Ghost of Tsushima (2020) : 51:09
42. Pikmin 3 (2013) : 52:19
43. Mario Kart Deluxe (2017) : 53:56
44. Elden Ring (2022) : 55:34
45. Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 (2000) : 57:14
46. Soulcalibur 2 (2002) : 58:55
47. Red Dead Redemption 2 (2018) : 1:00:36
48. Disco Elysium (2019) : 1:02:20
49. Perfect Dark (2000) : 1:03:55
50. Metroid Prime : 1:05:50
51. Resident Evil 4 (2005) : 1:07:14
52. Metal Gear Solid V : The Phantom Pain (2015) : 1:08:49
53. Kirby's Adventure (1993) : 1:10:22
54. Tetris Effect Connected (2020) : 1:11:39
55. Final Fantasy VII (1997) : 1:13:02
56. Hitman : Blood Money (2006) : 1:14:33
57. Unpacking (2021) : 1:15:52
58. Devil May Cry (2001) : 1:17:12
59. What Remains of Edith Finch (2017) : 1:18:28
60. The Walking Dead (2012) : 1:19:45
61. Journey (2012) : 1:21:02
62. Life is Strange (2015) : 1:22:37
63. Final Fantasy X (2001) : 1:23:54
64. Celeste (2018) : 1:25:11
65. Gears of War (2006) : 1:26:22
66. Doom (2016) : 1:27:42
67. Quake (1996) : 1:29:03
68. Metal Gear Solid (1998) : 1:30:16
69. Grim Fandango (1998) : 1:31:23
70. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018) : 1:32:29
71. Everybody's Gone to the Rapture (2015) : 1:33:44
72. Bioshock Infinite (2013) : 1:34:52
73. Hades (2020) : 1:36:32
74. The Legend of Zelda : The Wind Waker (2002) : 1:38:04
75. Super Mario World (1990) : 1:39:32
76. Braid (2008) : 1:41:13
77. Ori and the Will of the Wisps (2020) : 1:42:50
78. Persona 4 : Golden (2011) : 1:44:12
79. Starcraft II : Wings of Liberty (2010) : 1:45:39
80. Horizon : Forbidden West (2022) : 1:47:09
81. Castlevania : Symphony of the Night (1997) : 1:48:31
82. Sims 3 (2009) : 1:49:52
83. System Shock 2 (1999) : 1:51:06
84. Mortal Kombat 11 (2019) : 1:52:22
85. Shadow of the Colossus (2018) : 1:53:59
86. Katamari Damacy Reroll (2018) : 1:55:22
87. Ducktales (1989) : 1:56:34
88. Cave Story + (2011) : 1:57:55
89. DUES EX (2000) : 1:59:07
90. Assasins Creed II (2009) : 2:00:26
91. Sid Meiers Civilization IV (2005) : 2:01:51
92. Stardew Valley (2016) : 2:03:22
93. Animal Crossing : New Horizons (2020) : 2:04:38
94. Persona 5 Royal (2019) : 2:05:52
95. L.A.Noire (2011) : 2:07:07
96. Heavy Rain (2010) : 2:08:26
97. Uncharted 4 : A Thief's End (2016) : 2:09:54
98. Halo 3 (2007) : 2:11:31
99. Portal 2 (2011) : 2:12:47
100. The Legend of Zelda : Breath of the Wild (2017) : 2:14:10
101. Project Makeover (2020) : 2:15:52

[LiveConcertChris]

Thank you for eating up 2 and 1/2 hours of a dialysis session. Just freaking beautiful 💜

[platypuspigeon]

I restarted Skyrim on Christmas day on my new PS5 after my first playthrough 8 years prior and it just blows me away how good that game is. It has aged amazingly and I think it definitely deserves to be number one on this list!

[Dr.Gortman]

I personally believe that most of these games aged so so well. Also Falcom has a under appreciated masterpiece, that claps so many JRPG’s back in the day. Has it aged like a fine wine? Ys, it really has.

[steelerspro]

Wrote the list down for those who want to copy and paste games they still need to play. :)

101-The Witcher 3
100-Bioshock
99-WoW
98-The last of us
97-Mass Effect 2
96- Borderlands 2
95-Pokemon Yellow
94-2018 GoW
93-COD MW 2007
92-Outer Wilds
91-Resident Evil (2002)
90- Fallout 3
89- Mega man 2
88- Sonic The Hedgehog 2
87- Nier Automata
86- Hollow Knight
85- Undertake
84- Batman Arkham Asylum
83- Deadly Premonition
82- Super Mario 64
81- TLoZ Ocarina of Time
80- Star Wars KOTR
79- Uncharted 2
78- Halo Combat Evolved
77- Portal
76- ES4 Oblivion
75- Half Life 2
74- Dead space
73- Limbo
72- GTA V
71- Crash Bandicoot 3 (1998)
70- Minecraft
69- The last of us 2
68- Detroit Become Human
67- Halo Reach
66- Spyro 1998
65- Yakuza 0
64- Dark Souls
63- Spiderman (2018)
62- Timesplitters 2
61- Ghost of Tsushima
60- Pikmin 3
59- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
58- Elden Ring
57- Tony Hawks Pro Skater 2
56- Soul caliber 2
55- RDR2
54- Disco Elysium
53- Perfect Dark
52- Metroid Prime
51- Resident Evil 4
50- MGS 5
49- Kirbys Adventure (1993)
48- Tetris Effect Connected (2020)
47- Final Fantasy 7
46- Hitman Blood Money
45- Unpacking
44- DMC 2001
43- What Remains of Edith Finch
42- The Walking Dead
41- Journey
40- Life is Strange (2015)
39- Final Fantasy 10
38- Celeste
37- Gears Of War
36- Doom (2016)
35- Quake
34- MGS (1998)
33- Grim Fandango
32- SuperSmash Bros Ultimate
31- Everybody's gone to the rapture
30- Bioshock Infinite
29- Hades
28- TLoZ WindWaker
27- Super Mario World
26- Braid
25- Ori and the Will of the Wisps
24- Persona 4 Golden
23- Starcraft 2 Wings of Liberty
22- Horizon Forbidden West
21- Castlevania Symphony of the Night
20- Sims 3
19- System Shock 2
18- Mortal Kombat 11
17- Shadow of the Colossus
16- Katamari Damacy Reroll
15- Ducktales
14- Cave Story +
13- Deus Ex (2000)
12- Assassins Creed 2
11- CIV 4
10- Stardew Valley
9- Animal Crossing New Horizon
8- Persona 5 Royal
7- L.A. Noire
6- Heavy Rain
5- Uncharted 4
4- Halo 3
3- Portal 2
2- TLoZ BoTW
1- ES V Skyrim

[pistolmcawesome]

20 years later, the Resident Evil remake still looks stunning. It was definitely a game ahead of its time.

[Dmoney]

Most list always forget WoW. I’m glad you included it. I stopped after the 3rd DLC, but this game was so amazing and changed most people’s lives. Will always be grateful for the experience

[MotiviqueStudio]

Being an introvert has nothing to do with being outside. It's actually very easy to go outside and be completely alone.

[ksplatypus]

Great list! Although here's a few I'd add:

Earthbound/Mother 2: Probably my own favorite game, but objectively a very influential JRPG that was WAY ahead of its time. Very unique playstyle that both mocks and celebrates RPG tropes. As funny as it is sad and heartwarming.

Banjo-Kazooie: While Mario 64 established the 3D platformer as a genre, Banjo-Kazooie did the same with the 90s collectathon genre that many have replicated since. Fun, funny, and arguably Rare's magnum opus.

Street Fighter 2: I'm surprised that not a single Street Fighter made the list! It's the first game I think about when I think "fighting game." And this one took the elements of the first game and greatly improved on them to make one of the most popular games to play competitively of all time.

[TheOneGuy]

A couple of games to add:
Ōkami: A beautiful game with a great story and well designed Zelda-inspired gameplay.
A Hat in Time: A really fun 3D platformer absolutely oozing with charm.

Also, special mention goes to Ori and the Blind Forest. While you included its sequel, which inproves upon it in many ways, I still think the first is the better overall work of art.

[nikkocachila]

I know I shouldn't be suprised being a 30 year gamer. But I can't believe I've played at least 101 games already. Thanks for this list guys!

[ghettofridge]

I like that this list offers a variety of established classics, indie hits, and games like Deadly Premonition that are completely out of left field to fully display what this medium has to offer.

[StarmanNWC]

Was so pleased to see telltale’s walking dead on the list. If anyone has enjoyed that and wants another game to follow it up, I’d recommend the Wolf Among Us in a heartbeat, especially as telltale made that the first title that they announced after receiving new funding to get a sequel.

[robertconrad]

Good list but surprised not to see a Silent Hill game, Tomb Raider game and Donkey Kong game on here

[MikeHitt]

Batman Arkham Asylum was a “why did this take so long to create” moment. Genius creation

[andrewarnell]

Dropping this on a Friday night is perfect! That's my night off work sorted!

[Criggster]

What a great way to showcase gaming, everything appreciated for what it is and not compared and contrasted against each other

[masterofbloopers]

Someday I want a huge council to come together and make a definitive list of the "best" and most iconic video games of all time. Games that defined a genre, games that defined the industry, games that defined a generation, games that most gamers can agree deserve a spot on the list.

[kevinp]

Street Fighter, Counter Strike, Diablo 2 are Mt. Rushmore games that defined gaming in their respective genres forever. They needed to be recognized